Donation Nation Inc. Why They Do It.

In the wee hours of an October morning, Donation Nation Inc. employees stumble into work, slowly sipping their coffee, sauntering as the chill strikes their sore muscles from the day before; awaiting the caffeine to switch routine into consciousness. Beep, Beep. The fingerprint scanner starts the day with a metaphorical gunshot that begins their mission, their process of making Montgomery County a sustainable green community; repeat this operation seven days a week, 365 days a year.

Seven individuals walk into their building, every day, knowing that it most likely will be as hard as the day before, whether it be the stress from an unprocessed supply building its way to the top of the warehouse, or a strenuous schedule awaiting the day. Their employees come to work day after day because of the following numbers: (71,774), (2945), (15),( 64.36%- 70%) and (30%-35.64%). These are their achievements; these are the numbers that give light at the end of the tunnel, a guiding light that pushes their employees past the stress and fatigue that their mission inevitably precipitates.

Seventy-one thousand, Seven Hundred Seventy-four, a number that is the total dollar value of household items within the past nine months donated from Donation Nation to its local non-profit infrastructure. An amount, a goal in which Donation Nation’s employees strive every day to increase!

Two Thousand, Nine Hundred Ninety-Three is the total number of items donated from Donation Nation to its non-profit partners. Equating to: 154 couches, 125 dressers, 155 beds, 117 tables, 154 living room chairs, 712 bags of kids clothing, 223-nightstands and end tables, 69 lamps, 92 bookshelves, 15 televisions, 20 Desks, and 600 miscellaneous boxes of household items and more. Every day, seven individuals work tirelessly to pick up resources from our community, knowing that just one bed lifted and donated, is a floor that a child does not have to sleep on.

Fifteen, the total amount of non-profits within our region who have partnered up with Donation Nation Inc. seeking a supply to help build foundations of stability and dignity to empower, harness, and work towards self-actualization and success, both in an individual and families. Every new non-profit partner is a different mission, a different set of people who are in need of help. New partners offer different avenues of distribution, increasing the diversity of their program and the people they help, every day.

Seventy Percent, and Thirty Percent, Donation Nation’s diversion rate, a rate that expresses the success of their redistribution efforts, of their recycling program.64.36%- 70% Percent is the rate in which their supply is diverted from an incinerator, and either redistributed, recycled or put into their fundraising sales program; equating to just over 30-35.4 percent of their total amount is sent to an incinerator (Resource Recovery Facility). The Dickerson incinerator is a facility in which provides homes within Donation Nation’s area with electricity from the conversion of heat energy to steam. Zero percent of Donation Nation’s supply is sent to a landfill.

Every day, it takes work, it takes manual labor, it takes gumption to bring stability and dignity to our counties most vulnerable neighbors. Every day these numbers are a reminder of the success of their program, a reminder that the harder they work, our county becomes a little more greener, and the fight against poverty begins to sway in their communities favor. Out of their story, out of their long road to get to where they are now, is a common theme, a thread that connects everything within their mission, from their goals to their future aspirations as a non-profit; helping people is at the center.

You see, you cannot wake up every morning, let alone the bitter cold mornings, expect to lift furniture every day, or handle the amount of stress that goes into running a non-profit if you do not have a passion for helping your community and the people who reside. At the center of their mission, is a belief that if they can make donating easy, people will flock to their services and programs, eager to support their communities most vulnerable.

Seven, seven is the number of people who have picked up 770,375 pounds of household and commercial items since January of 2017. Seven is the number of individuals who believe that the work they do everyday changes lives, improves their community, and strengthens the local safety net infrastructure. For these seven individuals, limiting waste and furnishing homes is their answer to reducing poverty.

What is your answer? What is your solution to make sure that no child has to share a bed with their parents, or sleep on the floor? What. Is. Your. Answer. What are you going to do to help 72,000 people living in poverty within Montgomery County? How are you going to support your neighbors who are food insecure or families who transition from shelters to transitional homes? You see, you do not have to start a non-profit create change and help people, you alone can make a difference.

Support Donation Nation Inc., support their mission, promote their ideology that Montgomery County can be a green community, it can be a community that looks out for those who struggle. You alone can make sure that poverty becomes a temporary financial status, not a generational legacy.

Visit: https://donationnation.networkforgood.com/, and help Donation Nation Inc. expand their services and programs to make Montgomery County, a greener and sustainable community.

To quote the movie Bruce Almighty, “One act of random kindness, can change the world.”